Changing the Script

by Lee Winter

  The dog had blood on its muzzle. Shit! Come on, Sam! Get up! Her stomach twisted at the sight.

  Sid was bellowing for the gang to “give me my sister or this’ll get real ugly.”

  A biker tumbled, crashed over the shell of a rusted car, and skidded in front of the gate, at Alex’s feet. He stared up at her with a dazed look before his eyes fogged over and shut.

  Alex jogged around the outside of the compound, staying close to the wall, searching for a better vantage point. There. A big leafy tree overhung the wall.

  “I’m going up,” she said. “Stand by.” Clambering up its limbs, Alex reached wall height, then slid across a branch and looked down, centering the phone’s camera.

  She gasped. The four rampaging Rottweilers were spattered in blood. One was on top of Sam, and, wait, was it…licking her? The other three were snarling and snapping at anyone getting too close.

  Are the dogs protecting or attacking the cop? Someone posted a comment on her live feed. Or licking her to death?

  Good Q, said another.

  Some gang members were waving chains at their dogs, faces twisted with fear and rage. Periodically a Rottweiler would lunge at one and take a chunk out of him.

  A fat man with shaggy hair was calling out attack commands to the dogs, to little avail. Sid thundered up and crashed him to the ground in a tackle.

  Messages kept pinging down her page.

  Oww! Nice 1

  Got him!

  Boom! Fucking legend!

  Sam pushed away one Rottweiler that kept bounding over her and managed to crawl to her knees. A biker towering over her kicked at her head. She ducked to one side, caught his ankle, twisted sharply, and crashed him to the ground. Her fist connected with his stomach in follow-up. He grunted loudly enough for Alex to hear.

  Her phone started blooping reactions. Multiple thumbs up wafted across the page.

  This isn’t supposed to be damned entertaining, Alex thought in annoyance. “We need urgent assistance here,” she growled. “We’re outnumbered. There’s an officer down; she could be hurt. This isn’t a joke.” She crawled farther along the branch and held out her phone.

  Sid and the Matamata crew had now surrounded the biggest biker, the enormous bruiser who’d taken Sid down earlier. The man glared at the dogs, then Sam. “What the fuck did you do to them?”

  Alex glanced down at the latest alert.

  1 NEWS here, where exactly are you? Wild Boars aren’t listed. We want to send a TV crew

  Hell if I know, Alex thought, then inched farther along the branch.

  Sam’s boot lashed out at the giant, supplying a crunching stomp on the top of his knee. She jerked her head away just as a meaty fist came down at her.

  Alex gasped, marveling as the brute of a man grabbed his knee with a howl and sank to the ground. She’s holding her own. Actually, she’s magnificent.

  The human mountain flung his hand up, grabbed Sam’s foot, and jerked her to the ground. Jumping on her back, he flattened her.

  Bollocks! He had to weigh more than three men. The pain on Sam’s face was terrifying.

  The nearest dog flew at the brute with a snarl, attaching teeth to the giant’s arm. The biker roared in pain and tried to fling the dog away, but it clung to him, biting harder. While he was distracted, Sid waded in and attempted to drag the man off Sam’s back.

  As he did, Sam clawed her way out from under him. Her face was red, and she was gasping for breath. She seemed stunned and shaky.

  “Sam, get out of there fast!” Alex whispered.

  Messages were flashing up constantly by this point. Now a thousand people were watching.

  Hold on Officer Keegan!

  Hey, I think the dogs r winning!

  Am posting google map co-ords for 1news.

  A map appeared.

  Then a reply from the station. Thx. On way.

  Then another message. Ive called Hamilton cops. Theyre closest big station and got xtra muscle! Could take a wile tho

  She suspected it’d be long over by then.

  A few new faces had joined the fray—familiar ones.

  “Oh crap,” she muttered. “Those are three of my film’s stuntmen,” she told her audience.

  Had Chloe and Kiri told them about the desperate situation, or had they seen her feed? Either way, she was going to have a hard time explaining this to Quincy. It was bad enough she’d just bolted. At least she had Leslie to take over for her. Stuntmen had no replacements.

  The three men, all muscled, Maori, elite fighters, were wading into the fray with glee on their faces. The first stuntman grabbed at bikers one by one, giving each one a shake, and then tossing them behind as he went, where the next stuntman followed up with dizzyingly fast punch combos, before shunting them to the final man. The last stuntman latched onto each Boar by the collar and belt and hurled him out the gates.

  It was as coordinated as one might expect for pros who performed well-constructed fights for a living. Alex shook her head at how casual they made it look. The compound was rapidly starting to empty out as a result of their actions.

  Holy crap! When’s this movie coming out? Looks awesome!!!

  Wait, Alex, is this ur new movie?

  Oh! I thougt this was reel. Is this a promo?

  “No, it is not a bleeding promotion!” she replied hotly. “This is real. Lives are at stake.” One in particular. She tried to pick Sam out of the crowd but had lost sight of her when she’d spotted her stuntmen.

  A siren wailed in the distance.

  Three bikers were now on Sid, who was buried in a sea of red-and-black jackets. Suddenly Sam flew into the frame, hauling them off her brother by their long hair and seats of their pants. All the while, snapping dogs were everywhere, darting between people’s legs, taking opportunistic chunks out of Wild Boars.

  A loud crack sounded, and before Alex could react, her branch snapped. Suddenly she was in the air, tumbling over. The next second, the air slapped out of her lungs. The pain was searing. For a few moments, she could only register her senses. The smell of dirt and dust, the sound of grunts, shouts, and barking, and the taste of blood from inside her lip.

  Everything hurt.

  A muscled body went tumbling past her, landing easily on his feet. “Oh, hey, boss,” one of her stuntmen said in surprise. “Cool fight, eh?” He jogged back toward the fray. “Maybe get out of the kill zone, but?” he tossed over his shoulder.

  The kill zone?

  I’m in a damned kill zone.

  A roadworker’s Stop-Go sign flashed by, smashing into someone’s face, and a grizzled man appeared above it. He leaned casually on it and looked down at her. “Fancy seeing you here. Still working for that film company?”

  What? Wait, Frank? The You Dump, We Pump guy? What? No. I’m in hell. Alex closed her eyes.

  “Alex?” Sam’s concerned voice sounded in the distance. “What the hell are you doing here? I’m coming! Don’t move!”

  Move? Not likely. Alex opened her eyes and drew in a tentative breath.

  A frothing dog sprinted past, its eyes wild. It screeched to a halt, turned, and eyed her.

  Oh shit!

  It slunk over to her, tail down, mouth open, teeth bared.

  She covered her face with her arms.

  It jumped on her abused chest, its full weight pressing on her. Alex tensed, waiting for the worst.

  “Killer! Down, girl!” Sam’s authoritative voice sounded close now.

  Hot canine breath fanned her cheek. Suddenly the enormous animal bounded off Alex, and she lowered her shaking arms.

  Sam’s hand shot into view, wrenching the dog farther away by the collar. Then her face was right up in Alex’s. “You’re insane! Why would you come here? What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

  “Dying,” she whispered.
“Slowly.”

  “Nope, no you don’t.” Sam’s blood- and grime-streaked face hovered over her. “Not on my watch. Come on.” She hauled Alex to her feet in one yank.

  For half a second, Sam just held her upright while a swaying Alex found her balance. Had Sam always been this strong? Not to mention brave…

  “You idiot!” Alex said, suddenly remembering why they were all here. “You didn’t tell me Dino was some biker boss. If you had, I’d never have let you come here alone!”

  “Let me?” Sam’s expression grew quizzical, head turning in the direction of the fast-approaching sirens. “And who the hell called the troops? I had it handled.”

  Alex folded her arms. “You mean your brother and his friends did.”

  “They weren’t necessary. I’d been planning this for months. I had the dogs’ loyalty.” Her eye twitched. “I’m assuming you were the one who called the police?”

  “Well, yes and no. I didn’t know the address here, so I called in reinforcements.” At the reminder, Alex looked around for her phone. Where it had gone when she fell? “I’ve been live streaming to get you help.”

  Sam’s eyes went wide. “You let live footage go out of a police officer in a bikie brawl?”

  “Um, yes?” What was her issue? “You needed help; I got it.”

  “You…” Sam looked appalled. “I can’t even… I was handling it. This is my job. Do you have any idea what you’ve done?” As she spoke, a trickle of red ran down her neck. Sam wiped at it, peering at the blood.

  “You’re hurt!” Alex reached for her head. “And you’re welcome, by the way.”

  “It’s nothing.” Sam gritted her teeth. “Sid had no right letting you anywhere near this disaster. I’ll brain him.”

  “I didn’t give him any choice. And what’s so bad about gathering evidence of what happened?”

  “You really can’t see it?” Sam glared at her.

  Alex stared at her in confusion. “See what? I only shared the truth.”

  “Don’t be so naïve. Jesus, Alex, I trusted you.”

  Alex’s heart dropped into her shoes at the accusation, as if she’d betrayed Sam somehow. “I don’t understand. What are you—”

  Blue uniforms suddenly swarmed the compound, accompanied by officious shouts. The remaining fights broke up. Wild Boars were dragged outside, bleeding and cursing.

  “Are you all right, Senior Constable?” A salt-and-pepper-haired police officer appeared at Sam’s side. His assessing gaze flicked from the blood on Sam’s neck to Alex, and back again.

  “Yes. Thanks. Sergeant…?”

  “Hawkins.” He nodded at the blood. “There’s an ambulance outside. Get that looked at,” he ordered. “I’ll clean up this lot.” He suddenly froze and his face paled.

  Alex followed his gaze to see the prowling Rottweilers eying the new intruders. Their hackles were up, and their teeth bared.

  “I’ll take care of them,” Sam told the sergeant. “Stay back. Don’t go near them.” She whistled. The dogs bounded over to her. “Come on, kids, let’s get you locked away.” She led them behind a shed.

  Hawkins watched her go, shaking his head in disbelief.

  Suddenly the pinched features of Sam’s boss came into sight. Sergeant Peterson’s expression was harried. He waded through the chaos, gaze sweeping around, searching.

  Wasn’t he at a conference? How’d he get here so fast?

  The man spoke briefly to Hawkins, who pointed him behind the shed.

  Alex crept closer, wondering exactly how much trouble Sam’s boss was going to rain on her for taking on a biker gang solo. Maybe none? Didn’t they forgive their own, or something?

  She caught snatches of conversation from behind the shed. “Stupidest actions ever… reckless… insane… have your badge.”

  Alex moved closer, hearing Sam’s retort. “I guess when you owe twenty grand to bikies, it’s a bit hard to turn on them, isn’t it? Someone had to look into this, especially since you kept blocking me on the Boars.”

  Wait, was Sam’s boss on the take?

  “You have no idea what you’re talking about,” came Peterson’s voice.

  “I’ll have you investigated!”

  “You can’t stick a damned thing on me. No proof. Your word against mine. And I have seniority and a spotless record.”

  “No proof? Okay, how’d you get back from Tauranga so fast? Maybe you were at some local gambling den instead? Got any proof you were ever at that conference?”

  “I’ll have your badge in two seconds if you push on this. And I’ll deny this conversation even took place.”

  “Try me. You’ll find, like Dino did, that I can’t be blackmailed.”

  Peterson stalked into view and caught sight of Alex. “What are you looking at?” he snapped. “This is a police matter. Get back behind the cordon.”

  Before Alex could answer, more police surged past them to clear the area.

  “Hey, whose is this?” one officer shouted, lifting a dirty phone out of the small bush it had rolled into.

  “You found it?” Alex rushed over and grabbed it gratefully. “That’s mine.” She studied it anxiously. Oh. Still live streaming?

  Wait, eleven thousand viewers?

  She glanced at the screen. The comments made little sense.

  OH SHIT! That dudes ass got owned.

  Ill deny it, Ill take ur badge – haha – um, hey cop dude, the whole world just heard u!

  His ass is 2 seconds from being investigated. Burn!

  Alex’s eyes widened.

  “Ma’am, please step this way,” a police officer said to her, pointing to the gate. “We’ll need to take your details and question you on what has occurred. Thank you for your assistance.”

  She obeyed his instructions.

  Outside, bikers were sitting cross-legged up and down the road, handcuffed behind their backs. Some were bleeding. Shirts were torn. Faces bruised. A couple were unconscious, with paramedics looking them over. Police milled around.

  “You want your lawyer, eh?” one female cop was saying to the biker Alex had seen earlier shouting commands to the dogs. “Hope it’s a good one. We don’t take kindly to one of our own being assaulted. You and your men are in deep trouble.”

  Your men? That little pissant was Dino?

  “Hey, we were just here, minding our own business, and these thugs came and attacked us!” Dino protested. “Nothing illegal about defending our place.”

  The cop snorted. “Tell that to everyone who saw you on a live feed trying to order your dogs to attack a cop. Good thing for you they ignored you.”

  “I didn’t do that.” Dino squinted at her. “The hell you on about, woman?”

  Suddenly Alex’s phone came alive and she looked down to see laughing emojis all over the screen and comments about Dino being “in for a surprise.”

  Ah, right, still live.

  “Um, thanks, everyone, for getting the word out,” she told the viewers. She blinked at the numbers. “All fourteen thousand of you. You saved a good woman today. Thanks again.”

  A slew of thumbs up and heart signs greeted her just before she ended the feed.

  Dino was now staring at her and her phone, realization dawning.

  She turned it around to face him—not that he’d be able to see the screen. She smiled slowly.

  Alex half expected him to look murderous, but instead he deflated. Defeat settled around him. Pathetic man. God, even she could just reach over and—

  “Nah, boss, you can’t do that,” Sid said as he passed. “Not once they’ve been arrested, at least.”

  “How’d you know what I was thinking?”

  “You looked evil.” He chuckled. “So, you okay?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Pretty sure I told you to stay in my ute.”
/>   “Yes.”

  “Figures you’d ignore me.” Sid nodded at Sam, now being examined by a paramedic. “What’d ya do to Sam? Me, she wants to drown in free beers while calling me an idiot. You, she’s just full-on mad at.”

  “I told her I live-streamed the brawl. Fourteen thousand people were watching by the end.”

  “Oh.” Sid’s grin disappeared. “Yeah, bugger. That’s not good.”

  “She was kicking butt!”

  “She won’t see it that way.”

  “But everyone watching helped save her ass! We did good.”

  “Cops and cameras, eh? Not a great mix, seein’ as she wasn’t supposed to be here alone. She’ll be investigated and you just gave them all the evidence they need to tear her a new one.”

  “But—”

  “I know you meant well. It was a good idea. But Sam being a cop, it’s a whole lot of complicated for her now, right? She’s used to saving her own ass, so she’d be embarrassed it even needed saving. All those witnesses? She does not like being talked about or looking stupid.”

  “So she hates me.” Alex glanced at the sullen woman in question. Sam was standing with her hands on her hips, getting bandaged up by the paramedic.

  “Yeah, maybe, for now. She’ll come around. You just gotta give her time to think it through and realize she maybe owes you one.” He grinned.

  “Really?” Alex asked hopefully. “What if she doesn’t come around?”

  “Well, that’d suck. Having Sam mad at you is the worst thing. Trust me.”

  Great. “Well, I should go thank everyone,” Alex said. “Your road crew. Shezan’s stuntmen.”

  “Y’know, everyone’ll be at Te Wharariki pub tonight. Might be better to have a word to them then.” Sid glanced over at the ambulance. “And, you know, give Sam some space.”

  No kidding.

  A TV van screeched up, and soon a cameraman was out and panning the scene, while a crew began to interview the enthusiastic Matamata road crew.

  “Ah crap, I better sort this,” Sid muttered. “Those boys aren’t supposed to be off work. I gotta spin it right. Don’t want anyone getting fired.”